Two held over sheep carcass

A couple have been arrested after a sheep’s head was cut off and shown to local children.

The 39-year-old woman and a man aged 28 remained in police custody after the incident in Willington, Durham.

On Sunday and Monday, police received calls saying a sheep’s head had been left in the rear yard of a property in North Terrace.

Officers made inquiries and found the rest of the carcass in a nearby field. A vet examined the sheep and found signs it had been mutilated before it died. The animal’s head was displayed to children in the village.

The two were arrested on suspicion of animal cruelty and outraging public decency.